Ahmad Shah Durrani

Founder of the Durrani Empire and often regarded as the founder of modern Afghanistan.

He led military campaigns for over 25 years across West Asia, Central Asia, and South Asia.^[1] His empire encompassed Afghanistan, much of Pakistan, Iranian Khorasan, and parts of Northern India.^[1] Ahmad Khan Abdali, who was born around 1720–1722 and died in October 1772, established the Durrani Empire and is frequently called the creator of modern Afghanistan.^[1]

Last updated 2026-09-30 from the source article.

Quick Facts

House: Durrani
Father: Mohammad Zaman Khan
Mother: Zarghona Anaa
Birth name: Ahmad Khan Abdali
Born: 1720–1722
Birthplace: Herat, Sadozai Sultanate of Herat, or Multan, Mughal Empire
Died: 17 October 1772

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

He then departed for Kandahar with his regiments and asserted himself as leader of the Durrani tribesmen.^[2] The Abdali tribe of Pashtuns was the birth tribe of Ahmad Khan, whose birth occurred sometime between 1720 and 1722.^[3][4] Whether his birthplace was Herat (in today's Afghanistan) or Multan (in today's Pakistan) is a point of disagreement among sources.^[4] Zaman Khan, who held the position of Sultan of Herat, was Ahmad Shah's father and passed away in 1721.^[5]

He assumed the title Padishah and altered his tribe's designation from Abdali to Durrani.^[6]

What the cited sources add

Historian Sajjad Nejatie argues the majority of sources from Ahmad Shah's time state he was born in Herat, not Multan.^[4] A possible appointment as governor of Mazandaran for Ahmad Shah is mentioned by the Encyclopædia Iranica.^[7] The Qizilbash controlled the empire's civil service because most of the Durrani elite lacked literacy.^[8]

References

Wikipedia, "Ahmad Shah Durrani" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Clements Adamec 2003, p. 81 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Ahmad Shah Durrani" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lee 2022, p. 87 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Ahmad Shah Durrani" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mehta 2005, p. 246; Barfield 2022, p. 98; Balland 1995; Singh 1959, p. 459; Runion 2007, p. 71 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Ahmad Shah Durrani" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Nejatie 2017, p. 363 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Ahmad Shah Durrani" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Nejatie 2017, p. 363; Singh 1959, p. 459; Lee 2022, p. 87 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Ahmad Shah Durrani" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Rubin 2015, p. 112; Nejatie 2017, p. 363; Mehta 2005, p. 246; Barfield 2022, p. 98 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Ahmad Shah Durrani" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Balland 1995 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Ahmad Shah Durrani" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Noelle-Karimi 1997, p. 25 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Ahmad Shah Durrani (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.